


All thanks to Justin Hammer- Wait, what??

by afincf_tirwer



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cap_Ironman Holiday Gift Exchange 2017, First Dates, Fluff, Getting Together, Happy Ending, M/M, Misunderstandings, They are Both Dorks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-02-14 23:58:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13018947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afincf_tirwer/pseuds/afincf_tirwer
Summary: For the Cap_Ironman Holiday Exchange: Tony ends up for auction at a charity ball. Steve ends up with a ticket. But with both boys smitten and unable to address it, well, that leads to complications. Which leads to this story.





	All thanks to Justin Hammer- Wait, what??

**Author's Note:**

  * For [adarksweetness (chayaasi)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/chayaasi/gifts).



> For the giftee, I hope you like it. If anyone thinks the rating is wrong please tell me, thanks!

“Would you like another drink?” Steve forced a smile on his face as another socialite patted his butt when he walked by. The gala was to raise money for war veterans and Steve was there to raise money for school. Even though the pay wasn’t quite worth the butt-patting, it still meant he was able to support himself without relying on or worrying his mother. Besides, Clint and Sam were working with him and while the gala was boring, Sam’s long-suffering polite voice and Clint’s snarky comments about everyone’s outfit made it slightly less mind-numbing.

 

On the other side of the room, Tony Stark was having a lot more trouble with the mind-numbingly boring gala and his friends were oblivious to his suffering. Rhodey was pretending to be interested in the long spiel a general was directing at him and Pepper was flitting around the room socialising and charming investors. In all fairness, this is what Tony should be doing. As the youngest CEO of Stark Industries, the media and investors were shying away from his company, choosing to focus on…

 

“Stark! I’m so glad that I managed to find you tonight!” Justin Hammer appeared through the crowd and pulled Tony against his side, grinning as the cameras flashed in their faces. “Youngest CEO of your dad’s company so I took the liberty of putting you up for the charity auction tonight!” 

 

Tony’s face flushed with anger almost immediately but Pepper’s desperate arm waves and the cameras in his face forced a smile on his face and he slapped Hammer on his back as jovially as he could. “That’s great Hammer but Peps is calling me and I can’t stay, much as I’d love too.”

 

Tony shuddered when he reached Pepper and she pursed her lips at his wide, pleading brown eyes. She shook her head but he just looked more desperate and she sighed. “You have to do it, Tony, it’s for charity and the media will spin it the wrong way if you back out now.” 

 

“But Peps, it will be some empty-headed, gold-digging date that will storm out when I won’t fork out for everything they want!” Unfortunately for Tony, Rhodey had heard about the situation and was not on his friend’s side. Outnumbered and outwitted, Tony prepared for a boring date, mindless conversations and sly questions about his income.

 

“So what is this?” Steve blinked in confusion at the slip of paper Clint was waving in his face.

 

“It’s a ticket for the auction Rogers, honestly. There’s a high-tech drawing tablet up for grabs and now you’ve got a shot.” When Steve continued to stare incomprehensibly, Clint rolled his eyes and tucked the little white paper into his friend’s front pocket. The trio went back to their jobs serving champagne but Clint was vibrating in excitement, keen to know the outcome of the auction. By the time midnight rolled around, Clint had spilled his tray twice and was so jittery both Steve and Sam swore he wouldn’t be having coffee the next morning. Clint simply laughed, like they could stand in the way of his coffee.

 

The announcer walked up to the mic and began to reveal the winners of the auction. Clint deflated like a balloon when he heard that Steve didn’t get the tablet. His friends came over to reassure him. “Ah come on Barton, it’s not the end of the world. Besides, the amount of tips Rogers has raked in due to those socialites, bet he could buy his own tablet after another night like thi-” Sam was interrupted by a loud voice, stating,

 

“Mr Steve Rogers? A Mr Steve Rogers has won the grand prize, a date with Tony Stark!” The announcement was punctuated by a tremendous smash as three trays of champagne flutes went crashing to the ground. Steve was ushered up on stage and he got his first close look at Tony Stark. He pursed his lips, he was shorter than Steve, but most were, he had soft brown hair that Steve kind of wanted to pat and warm brown eyes, the kind you’d want to sink into and curl up into.

 

Tony was having the same issue. There was a blond hunk standing in front of him with piercing blue eyes and pale blond hair with abs you could cut a steak on. When the entire hall fell silent and Tony noticed both Rhodey and Pepper seemed to be in despair, he realised he may have said that last bit out loud. But what was wrong with appreciating such a fine looking-. He was cut off by a warm hand covering his mouth and looked up to see a pretty pink blush spreading across the Adonis’ cheeks. In his head this time, Tony wondered just how far that blush could spread.

 

Steve was absolutely mortified. On one hand, it was remarkably flattering that Tony Stark, Time magazine’s sexiest man, thought he was attractive. On the other hand, he could see Sam and Clint pissing themselves laughing so perhaps it wasn’t quite worth it. He managed to pull them both away from the cameras and paparazzi and turned to face Mr Stark again.

 

“I would just like to make it clear that it’s not necessary that you take me out on a date. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable in any way, I mean you probably signed up for it but I’d just like to make it clear-” Tony broke in to try and reassure the man.

 

“I didn’t sign up for the auction, Justin Hammer signed me up without my knowledge.” Tony winced as he watched Rogers’s face fell and suddenly closed up, the blush on his cheeks and the shy warmth in his eyes had died.

 

“Oh. Well, of course, I won’t force my company on you any further, I am sorry to have taken up so much of your time.”

 

“No wait, I didn’t mean-!” But it was too late. Steve had already left, Tony’s fingers slipping against the soft fabric. His face set into a scowl and he darted after the other man, managing to pull him back which resulted in them both losing their balance and for Tony to end up straddling Steve’s stomach.  _ Damn this man really is built like a brick house _ .

 

Meanwhile Steve was panicking as his hands rested on Tony’s waist and he immediately scrambled out from under the man and bolted, this time managing to completely avoid being caught by Tony, grabbed his belongings and ran all the way back home, leaving Tony confused and hurt, wondering what else had caused Steve to run so quickly.

 

Clint and Sam exchanged exasperated looks over Steve’s head as he told them what had happened. “You mean to tell us that he was right there, he ran after you, and you still left him?” Steve buried his head deeper into his hands and Clint poked his side experimentally while Sam shot him a “wtf” look from where he was sitting.

 

“I panicked, I didn’t really think he wanted to take me on a date! I thought he was just being nice!”

 

Tony leant against Pepper sulkily as she sighed at him, “oh Tony, you told him you weren’t interested in the auction?” Tony groaned loudly.

 

“I didn’t know what else to say Peps! My brain to mouth filter was on the fritz...I said you could cut a steak on his abs!”

 

“Steve he said he could cut a steak on your abs! Clearly, this is a sign he was into you” Clint whacked his friend with a pillow causing Sam to throw one at his face, knocking him off his perch where he landed with a thud, “Oh it’s on now Wilson, defend yourself!” Clint lunged for the other man and they both tumbled to the floor. Steve stood up and slipped out of the door quietly. He needed to clear his head.

 

“Tones, what you need to do is go find that “blond Adonis” and ask him out again, properly!” Rhodey was yelling moral support from the sofa as he sorted through documents. Pepper patted her friend’s head once more for luck before shoving him out of her lap and onto the floor with a dull thunk.

 

“Peps!” Tony wailed, scandalised at the betrayal while both his friends bundled him up in three layers before shoving him out of his apartment building and onto the cold streets.

 

“He went that direction, Tony!” Were their last words to him before they retreated back to the warm building. Tony set off, muttering the whole way about stupid meddling friends and their inability to butt out of his business. He was so caught up in his thoughts, he crashed into someone and watched in horror as their phone went right through a grate, lost.

 

“I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you, I swear I’ll pay for a replacement, any phone you want!”

 

Steve was hunched down into his layers, shivering slightly, while using his phone for the directions to Stark Tower. All of a sudden a mountain of walking winter clothes collided with him and he watched, rather detachedly, as his phone disappeared down a sewer grate. He was a little more focused on the warm brown eyes, the long, soft lashes and how cute the stranger looked, all bundled up and red-nosed, despite his dark skin. He realised, belatedly, that the stranger was offering to buy him a new phone.

 

“Oh no, that is not necessary, I really don’t need you to, I promise it’s fine. Don’t waste your money, I’ll break the new one in a couple of months anyway.”

 

“Well I have to make it up to you somehow!” Tony realised that underneath the layers of padded clothing, the man was really quite handsome. With his pinkened cheeks from the cold and sky blue eyes, Tony felt the best way to apologise had just popped into his head. “Let me buy you a coffee at least, it’s freezing and I think it’s about to rain.”

 

Steve considered saying no, he really didn’t think any further apology was necessary but the earnestness of the offer and the hopeful look in the other man’s eyes made him cave.  _ I guess I’m a sucker for warm, brown eyes. _

 

They wandered the streets a little longer, exchanging little things about themselves and Steve let out a long, loud laugh when Tony revealed that one time at M.I.T, his friend and himself broke into the head’s office and wrapped everything in bubble wrap. To get away they had to jump a fence but as Tony was too small, Rhodey had to give him a boost.

 

“So you always were a short stack?” Tony punched his shoulder, laughing, the sound of it leading to warmth in Steve’s stomach.

 

“Shut up, just because you never stopped growing.”

 

The warmth of the coffee shop was a welcome relief but as they began to shed their winter coats they realised who they had been talking to. Steve felt the blush rise on his cheeks instantly and Tony winced at the uncomfortable atmosphere that had just arrived.

 

After standing in silence beside a table for a few moments, Steve grabbed the initiative and pulled Tony into the booth beside him. Tony leaned into the warmth instinctively and Steve wrapped his arm around him, pleased with the comfortable fit. They sipped at their drinks quietly but then Tony couldn’t hold his tongue any longer.

 

“I did want to take you out on that date. I just forgot my brain to mouth filter.”

 

“Are you sure Stark? I didn’t  _ quite _ notice that slip-up,” Tony scowled playfully at him but then Steve spoke again, “so I guess this means that you owe me a date.”

 

“Isn’t this our date for the gala auction?” Questioned Tony, a little confused but still willing to play along.

 

“Of course not, this is the date of the man whose phone ended up down a drain and the man who was the cause of the incident.”

 

“Pretty long names there Rogers, not quite what I had in mind for someone like you.”

 

“Oh really? Well, I suppose you’ll just have to come up with something better,  _ Tony.”  _ Tony grinned, enjoying the way his name rolled off Steve’s tongue.

 

“How about sugar tits?” At Steve’s scandalised expression, Tony could barely hold a straight face, “no? Honey bear? Pumpkin? Sweet cheeks? Snookums?” At the last one, Tony dug his fingers into Steve’s ribs, causing a burst of laughter. “Aha, so we like snookums, well duly noted snookums.” 

 

Steve jabbed his own fingers at Tony’s waist in retaliation and they squirmed like children, occasionally shrieking at unthought of octaves. When they both finally calmed down the bill came and Tony reached for it, only for Steve to slid it out from under his fingertips.

 

“Steve no, you lost your phone because of me, I’m paying.”

 

“You’re not paying, I am paying for you and you can’t stop me.” An impromptu wrestling match broke out between the two boys and Steve halted it by speaking. “Okay fine, if you can reach the slip when I hold it above my head,  _ without _ tickling, you can pay.”

 

Tony considered his options, reaching was out of the question, tickling had been forbidden...hmm. Before Steve could process what was happening, Tony had pulled their lips together a gentle, chaste kiss with led to Steve lowering his arm in shock and Tony paid and left the tip before he recovered.

 

“That’s fighting dirty Stark.” Steve scowled playfully at him as they left the little shop but Tony just smirked.

 

“What can I say? I use the abilities at my disposal.” Tony turned to walk away but Steve grabbed his hand and scrawled a string of numbers onto it. “I thought you’d lost your phone.”

 

“That was my old one, so you have no excuse not to call. I haven’t forgotten about that promise of a second date you know.”

 

Tony grinned at the promise. “It’ll be here before you know it snookums.” Tony let out a startled squeak as Steve reeled him in for another kiss. This one was a lot less chaste with Tony letting out a gasp as Steve’s hands slipped under his coat and into his back pockets.

 

When they broke apart their lips were slightly redder than usual and Steve’s cheeks were burning once more. They lingered shyly for a few more moments before going their separate ways. By the time Tony had told Pepper and Rhodey about his success it was almost five in the morning but he pulled out his phone to plug in Steve’s number. 

 

Absent-minded, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out the cost of the bill as well as the tip he threw in at the cafe. His lips twitched up into a smirk and he fired off a quick text.

 

_ Tony: Fighting dirty too, aren’t you snookums? _

 

_ Steve: I don’t know what you mean, I just used my talents. _

 

_ Tony: Next time I see you, you’ll pay for your trickery. _

 

_ Steve: I’m looking forward to it, ;)  _

 

Both men smiled at their phones one last time before going to bed. Tony was suddenly struck by a terrible thought, all this came about because of Justin Hammer. The little slimeball was responsible for the best thing that had happened to him for a long time. Tony muttered for a bit, irritated, but then his mind conjured up an image of Steve’s coy, blushing face and his annoyance evaporated and he fell into a deep sleep. Both men dreamt of what grand dates they could take the each other to, planning out how they would pick up the bill and certain that this was the start of something wonderful.

 

*Epilogue*

 

“No way in hell is he coming to our wedding!”

 

“Tony, he’s responsible for all of this! We can’t just snub him!”

 

“Yes, we can! Stark Industries has been Hammer free for years! And you want to bring him back!”

 

“Honey be reasonable, you’ve invited every other company’s CEO, refusing Hammer will lead to bad press!”

 

“I’m willing to deal with the bad press!”

 

“He’ll crash it if you don’t invite him!”

 

Tony’s blood ran cold with that assertion. “He wouldn’t.”

 

“Would you like to risk it?” Tony scowled at his fiance as he scrawled Hammer’s name on the list.

 

“If I do this you have to let me put Clint next to Natasha.”

 

“He’s terrified of her Tony, that’s cruel.”   
  
“No, he’s in awe of her, this would be a great opportunity for him. I’m giving “Hawkeye” a chance to display his feathers.”

 

Clint groaned as he caught the tail end of the sentence. “Enough with the bird jokes Stark, they’re starting to get old.”

 

“Just like your constant pining over Nat.” Tony coughed quietly, earning a suspicious look but no further comment.

 

The months suddenly turned to weeks, then days then it was mere hours before the wedding and Pepper and Rhodey were walking Tony down the aisle. Steve’s mother was reduced to tears and Sam nudged Steve to jolt him out of his awestruck look when he spotted Tony. Even Natasha was tearful, even though no one saw and she would never admit to it.

 

After the ceremony and once they were on the dance floor, with Tony leading to avoid foot damage from Steve, they got a few moments alone. They whispered quietly to each other, revelling in each other’s company and still shocked that they were officially married. Steve was flushed a happy pink all day while Tony got a soft look when he glanced at their rings. Their happiness was at a peak on that day and the gain of Tony’s favourite person was set into motion by one of Tony’s least favourite people. How ironic.


End file.
